


Take Cover

by alexthelioness



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-20
Updated: 2016-09-20
Packaged: 2018-08-16 05:36:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8089219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexthelioness/pseuds/alexthelioness
Summary: Future Fic: On their way home from soccer practice, Felicity and Oliver's 14 year old daughter are taken. Given an impossible choice, Oliver must decide who to save.





	

Felicity woke up slowly. She waited a minute for her eyes to adjust to the low lighting surrounding her, and groaned when she felt a stab of pain on her forehead. She moved to discover the source of the pain, but soon found that her arms are bound behind her. Confused, she tried to remember what exactly led to this point. She could remember flashes of rain and sudden bright lights and Emily's screams accompanied by the crunch of steel. 

Emily. 

She sat up straight, now fully conscious, eyes searching for her daughter wildly around the dim room. There was no sign of anyone else in the room, just a light bulb shining overhead and a large door facing opposite her. 

"Emily?" She knew calling out was futile, but she was just trying to quell the panic that threatened to envelop her. 

_Felicity had gone to pick up Emily from soccer practice - it had started to thunder so practice had been cut short - and Emily had been bounding in the passenger seat recounting her day,_

_"..and his face when I had showed him that not only had I coded the next 2 assignments, but I also had time to reorganize the schools welcome page. Of course he wanted to send me to the principals office-" Felicity turned to look at the young woman sitting on her right,_

_"Emily Dearden Queen, what did we tell you about hacking into place you shouldn't!" The girl frowned and crossed her arms, her enthusiasm from before clearly deflating,_

_"Oh please! It's not like you've done way worse helping dad on patrol. I have yet to hack into SCPD!" Felicity gave a huff of indignation and returned her eyes to the road,_

_"You and I both know that those circumstances are different. Life and Death is way more serious that being bored in your computer sciences class!"_

_"It's not like he actually sent me to the office! Especially once I told him what I found on his computer!" Felicity sighed, she should've expected that the child of Oliver and herself would be so stubborn and yet so good with the computer. It was her fault really. "Besides, I was thinking, now that you've got this new project going on at Palmer Tech, and I've gotten so good at this, maybe I could take a shot at Overwatch?" Felicity could feel the girls steady gaze on her, hoping for an affirmative._

_"Emily," she started. She could see the girl visibly deflate in her chair, she really had been hoping, "What your father and I do is dangerous. Your father, Aunt Thea and Uncle Diggle and I are a well oiled machine, it takes years of_ _practice and trust to be able to pull things off like we do. Even Curtis has trouble sometimes."_

_"But how will I ever get practice if you don't let me? I know all the drills, I've seen them train, I've seen you work! I can do it! If not as overwatch, but going out with Dad-"_

_"Absolutely not!" Felicity turns back to her daughter, eyes fierce and protective, "I can barely handle having your father close the death every night, I don't think i could survive having you out there too."_

_"But Sara-"_

_"What John and Lyla do with their daughter is their business, your father and I both agreed long ago that we would keep you as far from the field as possible."_

_"But mom!"_

_"Enough. You can bring this to discussion with your father tonight, but I will not-"_

Next came the smashing and screaming and darkness that led Felicity to where she was now. Alone, injured and tied up. Squirming, Felicity tried to employ the many tactics Diggle and Oliver had taught her about trying to escape. Breaking the metal chair would be impossible, and the sides were smooth, not a single screw in sight. Before she could think of any other, the door swung open. Squinting her eyes to avoid the harsh light, Felicity could only make out a large figure string towards her, 

"Oliver?" she called out hopefully, the laugh that responded sent chills down her spine, 

"No, Ms Smoak. Or is it Mrs Queen? You don't seem the type to change your name." _This couldn't be happening he was supposed to be dead._ The figure stepped out into the light and Felicity's worst fears were confirmed. Before her stood Damien Darhk. 

"No! You're dead! We killed you." Darhk responded with only a wide grin. Unspeaking he circled around the chair eyeing Felicity like a piece of meat. Finally she had to break the silence, "What do you want? Where's my daughter?" Darhk stopped pacing, a wild glint in his eyes, 

"Ms Smoak, with all your intellect, I was sure that the moment you saw me, you would realize what my true purpose with you and your daughter is." Felicity jerked at the mention of Emily, her eyes narrowed and she spoke with a growl 

"Why don't you humor me and tell me where my daughter is?" Darhk nodded towards the door and a guard came in carrying with him a tablet. He stopped a few feet shy of Felicity held up the tablet. Felicity's heart almost stopped at the sight. Sure enough her daughter was there, in an almost identical situation that she had found herself in. There didn't seem to be any signs of damage besides the scratched from the accident, but fury grew in her chest all the same, "Oliver will find us, and when he does, you're gonna die, and stay dead." At the sound of her mother's voice, Emily's head picked up, 

"Mom?" Felicity immediately focused all her attention on her daughter, 

"Emily? I'm here, I'm okay. Are you okay?" Emily took a mental stock of herself and nodded, finally looking towards the camera. Felicity could see the fear in her eyes, but beyond that, she could see the determination brewing as well. She was not Oliver Queens daughter if she didn't have determination.

"I'm fine. What's going on? Where are you? Where's dad?" The guard cut the feed before Felicity could respond. She gave a frustrated cry and glared back at the man responsible. Darhk began his pacing again, speaking as though he had all the time in the world,

"When you defeated me all those years ago, you left me weak, unstable, a shell of my former self, but most of all, you took my family away." He spoke with such venom and distaste, it took Felicity only a couple seconds to put the pieces together. 

"You want to do the same to Oliver." Darhk's gleeful smile was all Felicity needed to confirm her suspicion, "But why separate us? Wouldn't it be easier to have us together?" Darhk stopped once again, closer this time. He leaned forward so he was almost eye level with Felicity. 

"I am no stranger to the ability of the Queen family, and I have no doubt that the spawn of both the Queen and Smoak household would have a few tricks up their sleeves as well. This way, if one of you escapes, theres still another. And," he pauses, " I have a special treat for your husband."

The guard hands Darhk the tablet and after a few seconds, Felicity can hear the telltale ring of FaceTime before someone picks up, 

"Hell- What the hell?" Darhk nods approvingly at Oliver's reaction, 

"Hello Mr Queen, long time no see, don't you think?"

"This is impossible! You're dead!"

"You speak as though you're surprised, as though you haven't faked your death countless times."

"What the hell do you want? Wheres Emily? Wheres Felicity? What have you done to them?" Darhk flips the camera towards her and although she can't see him, Felicity can hear Oliver's sharp intake of breath. "Felicity."

She uses the opportunity to speak, 

"Oliver, no matter what Darhk says, you have to remember what we promised each other when Emily was born. Don't do anything stupid, you know what you need to-" Darhk puts a hand on her mouth, effectively silencing her, and uses the other hand to switch the camera back. Oliver's gruff voice speaks again,

"What do you want?" Darhk cocks his head to the side, amusement radiating off his features, 

"I want you to suffer. I want you, to be the cause of your own downfall. I want you to watch the people you love die, knowing theres nothing you can do to prevent it." Darhk pauses another moment before continuing, "I have separated your wife and daughter. As soon as this call ends and I am gone, the bombs I have placed around each girl will be armed and ready. Disarm one, the other goes off. Move one girl, the other girl goes kaboom. Either way, you are responsible for your own actions." Felicity uses that moment to bite into Darhk's hand, momentarily allowing her to speak again, 

"Oliver, do what you promised. You know what you have to do." Angrily, Damien Darhk ends the call, and she can tell by the way he's holding his fists, that he's resisting the urge to hurt her. Instead he sets up the tablet on a viewing table brought in by the guard. After a few quick swipes she's met again with the face of her daughter, 

"I imagine you want to say goodbye. I'll leave this here." He walks out the door and Felicity can hear the telltale beep of the bomb arming. She slumps back in her seat and lets out an exhale, 

"Mom?" Felicity looks up at the tablet, meeting her daughter's eyes, "What's going on?"

"Honey I think you're smart enough that you've figured it out already."

"We're gonna die aren't we?" Felicity shakes her head, 

"No honey, you're gonna get out just fine. Your Father is no doubt tracking where you are at this very moment to come rescue you."

"And what about you?"

"What about me?" Felicity takes a deep breath, bracing herself for the conversation to come, 

"After he comes for me, he's gonna come looking for you too right?" Felicity allows a sad smile to grace her lips, 

"I wish it were that simple. Darhk, he's smart. He knows that your father loves us both very much, and so he knows that to hurt one of us is to hurt your father." Felicity can tell that Emily is trying to deny what's she's being told. She could thank that Queen-Smoak stubbornness for that. "I'm not going to sugarcoat it honey, but only one of us is going to get rescued tonight." She can see the moment it clicks in Emily's face, her face seems to go pale and her eyes threaten to overflow, "Your father and I made a promise when you were born. In a situation like this, there would be no question, you were the main priority."

"Thats not fair! We an find a way to get to you! I can hack into the communications, find a way to disarm the bomb! This can't- this can't be it." Tears are running freely down both their faces. Felicity tries to compose herself, she doesn't want her last conversation with her daughter to be marred with tears, 

"Emily, I need you to promise me something."

"Anything mom."

"Take care of them as Overwatch. Make sure your dad doesn't spiral too far, and that Uncle Digg doesn't take it out on the streets, and make sure that they're safe."

"I can't do that mom! I can't be Overwatch! You said so yourself, I don't have the practice!"

"Emily, you're my daughter, of course you can do it. It was never really about the practice. I just didn't want to think about you grown up and helping take care of bad guys. Now Emily, I need you to promise." She can barely hear Emily though the girls sobs, but in the end she does hear 

"I promise mom."

Sooner that expected, Felicity can hear the door burst open through the tablet. They found Emily. Theres a scurry of movement and suddenly Oliver's face is there, and Felicity has to hold back her own sob. 

"Felicity honey can you hear me?" Unable to speak, she nods her head

"Diggle's looking for a way to disarm the bomb. We're gonna get you out of there, okay?" Felicity nods again, even though, in her heart, she knows they won't. Gaining some composure she speaks again, 

"I love you. Always and forever." Theres a grunt from the tablet and a whispered "No" and Felicity can hear the beeping of her own explosives speed up. With one last moment she looks up and sees Oliver helping Emily of the chair, both looking at her in fear, 

"I love you."

The feed goes dead. 


End file.
